This article examines the legal and policy bases for doing away with the statutory requirement for companies, such as banks and financial institutions, incorporated under the Zambian Companies Act 1994, to have a memorandum of association. A notable consequence of permitting the incorporation of companies without a memorandum of association is that an investor could be misled to think that the Zambian Companies Act 1994 has done away with the statutory requirement for companies to have some form of objects clause. While the 'ultra vires' doctrine continues to apply in Zambia, its significance has been watered down by the introduction of Forms I, II, III and IV in the Companies (Prescribed Forms) Regulations to replace the statutory requirement in the Companies Act 1994 for an objects clause in the memorandum of association. These legislative changes were meant not only to simplify the incorporation of companies but also to abolish the 'ultra vires' doctrine in Zambia's company law. Notes, ref. [ASC Leiden abstract]